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How to Access Blocked Streaming Sites in Turkey

In the year 2013, Turkey was tagged as “not free” by the Freedom House, a U.S. based organisation which duel in researches political freedom and human rights. That same year (2013), 40 journalists were jailed for speaking out on controversial political subjects 8 people more than in China that same year.

One year later, Twitter’s transparency report showed that Turkey filed more requests to remove ‘inappropriate’ content than any other country in the world. It is safe to say that Turkey’s censorship blocks are some of the strictest in the world, including those placed on streaming sites.

Specifically, 114,000 websites were found to be blocked in Turkey, including YouTube (temporarily) in 2014.

That is why the popularity of VPN as a tool to bypass government censorship has increased dramatically in Turkey over the past few years. In this article, I will take a look at the best VPN providers you can use in Turkey to accessed blocked streaming websites. You can also find instructions on how to setup VPN to access banned websites globally.

Why Do You Need a VPN in Turkey?

VPN applications are designed to reroute your Web browsing data through a remote and secure server. This means that your ISP (Internet service provider) won’t be able to see your online activity nor to collect your personal data. As an added bonus, you will get to access previously restricted websites and use Web services that were previously blocked.

So if you live in Turkey, either permanently or you are there for a visit. The chances are that your Web browsing activities are being monitored is high and it is real. It is a known fact that Internet service providers of this country are working with the government on filtering all data that they come across.

As you can imagine, the authorities are explaining this as their way of fighting against terrorism. However, where this leaves average Internet users who want to access the Web without any restrictions? It leaves them with limited options, but with VPNs on your side, you are safe and secure. With these points on board, you are at the right place to learn how to access blocked sites in Turkey.

List of Websites Blocked in Turkey

As a matter of fact, media freedom has always been a controversial topic. Take, for instance, YouTube was banned back in 2017 while certain websites were also blocked on Google a year later. Here is a list of the most popular websites banned in Turkey over the years.

What to look for in a VPN for Turkey

With so many VPN service provider in the market, it is important to know what you are looking for before you sign up for a service. In order to access blocked streaming sites from Turkey, several features are particularly crucial.

For example, you will need a VPN with strong security: since many VPNs are blocked in Turkey, the service has to mask the fact that you are using a VPN and keep all your personal information protected. Here is what you should concern about:

====> Server network: In short, the more nodes your VPN provider has, the more connection options you have both in terms of location and speed. To access a wide array of international content, choose a provider with a large server network.

====> Device availability: In order to enjoy the service on all your devices, opt for a provider with wide software availability.

====> Fast connection: Since your aim is to access blocked streaming sites, speed is of prime importance. Choose a VPN service that places no restrictions on bandwidth, doesn’t use speed caps, and if possible, has no restrictions on server switching, while optimizing their encryption and routing processes to burden your connection with as little overhead as possible.

====> Strong encryption: To make sure your data is never snooped on by the government, ISPs, or hackers, choose a service with strong encryption. 256-bit AES encryption is considered to be the industry’s gold standard.

====> Logging policy: When VPN providers keep records of your online activity, there is always a chance that the logs will get into the hands of interested third parties, which is rarely a good thing. Therefore, it is important that the VPN you choose has a solid no-logging or zero-logging policy which stores no information on your account.

How to Setup a VPN to Unblock Banned Websites in Turkey? Step-by-Step Guide

Setting up a VPN connection to access blocked sites such as Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, or Google in Turkey is not as difficult as you might think. Once you follow the instructions below, you will also have access to geo-blocked channels from the USA, UK, Australia, Germany, or France.

Step 1 ====> First of all, sign up with one of the VPN providers below this guide.

Step 2 ====> Download and install the VPN app on your devices, such as PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, or Android.

Step 3 ====> Launch the application and sign in using your VPN details.

Step 4 ====> Connect to a VPN server in USA, UK, or Australia. If you are not that interested in geo-restricted channels like Hulu, HBO GO, Netflix, or Sky Go, use a VPN server in a region close to Turkey for faster speeds.

Step 5 ====> Now that you have established a VPN connection you can access any blocked website you want in Turkey.

Our Top VPNs to Access Blocked streaming sites in Turkey

Put into consideration all the factors we have listed above, take a look at our VPNs to access blocked streaming sites in Turkey.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN ensures you will have the necessary bandwidth to stream video in high quality with minimal buffering. In total, it operates over 2,000 servers in 94 countries.

Besides Netflix, ExpressVPN unblocks BBC iPlayer, Hulu, HBO, and Amazon Prime Video and several websites. It comes with best-in-class security, including a kill switch and robust leak prevention. The company stores no identifying logs of what you do online.

Apps are available for Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, Amazon Fire TV, Linux, and certain wifi routers. You may connect up to three devices at the same time.

PureVPN

PureVPN is a service that combines the feature set of a premium VPN with a budget price point. With servers in 140+ countries, PureVPN will let you connect to a variety of US servers and IP addresses.

Moreover, you will be able to connect to other English-speaking countries’ IPs quickly and easily if you want to enjoy Canada’s, Australia’s, or the UK’s content libraries and websites.

Another important advantage is that PureVPN offers unlimited bandwidth, speed, and server switches. This means you can enjoy blocked streaming websites to your heart’s content without worrying about running out of traffic.

Moreover, PureVPN’s dedicated streaming servers mean that you get incredibly fast connection speeds and videos with no buffering, no quality loss, and no lost frames.

NordVPN

NordVPN is one of the leading VPNs if not the leading one. It has gained and establishes itself through its amazing services render to his subscribers.

NordVPN combines its security, advanced features, and ability to unlock regional blocks on websites and service like CBC. This service provider has a network consisting of 5,232 servers in more than 60 countries, which is several times more than any other VPN on the market.

In addition, NordVPN has a range of speciality servers that make it particularly easy to bypass regional blocks when abroad. These include onion over VPN, anti-DDoS, and obfuscated servers, which completely masks the fact that you are using a VPN.

Encryption protocols also include UDP and TCP, as well as SSTP, which helps overcome even the harshest censorship blocks.

NordVPN also provides excellent speed, allowing you to stream all the content you want with no delays or interruptions. It has no limitations on bandwidth, which means you can stay connected without having to worry about speed loss, and you can connect up to six devices at once.

Vpnxon wants to helps you to make an informed decision before committing to a VPN. That is why we will take a look at the current situation in Turkey and what this means for average Web users.

Getting a Turkish IP Address

It is also worth noting that you can use a VPN not only if you want to access blocked websites. For example, you can use it to get a Turkish IP address and continue using the Web as usually. The only difference here is that your connection will become encrypted. Therefore, none of your data will be collected.

Turkish Censorship Laws

During the last couple of years, we have witnessed Turkey’s attempts to tightly control the Web. This was made possible via two invasive laws, the Electronic Communications Law and the Internet Act.

One of the results of the recent military coup was tighter control of social media. Websites like Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube were banned in the past, where many of these are still not fully available.

In addition, file sharing websites are also blocked such as The Pirate Bay, Megaupload, Dropbox, and numerous others. The only way to keep using these without any restrictions is by employing a VPN.

Conclusion

Due to the harsh internet laws and the current political situation in Turkey, accessing content from banned streaming sites can be tricky. Since websites like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter have been a part of temporary social media blackouts, the idea of more and more websites becoming banned is not so far-fetched.

In order to make sure that you are never under surveillance of government authorities, and your connection is fast and reliable, choose one of our recommended VPN providers for bypassing blocked streaming services. From now onwards, you won’t need to worry about geo-blocks or your online privacy.